“They are dangerous. They could have adverse effects that the individuals may not even recognize.”

Plus, sharing opioids is against the law. A study shows 1 out of 5 people who were prescribed opioids shared them, mostly to help friends or family with pain. And almost half of the people in the study did not know what to do with leftover pills.

“My recommendation to patients is if there’s any medication left over at all, it needs to be disposed of. It needs to be out of the house. This is not a medication you want sitting in the cabinet for some use in the future.”